Back in mid-October, SHSC sent a delegation to the first International Social Housing Summit (ISH) to learn about approaches to social housing from around the world.

Attending conferences can be great learning and networking experiences, but they can also end up being a missed opportunity, expensive and a waste of time. Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your conference experience.

With rising energy costs, more and more people are becoming worried about their utility bills. Are you one of them?

On May 12, 2010 the Ontario government introduced Bill 65, the Not-for-Profit Corporations Act, 2010. Bill 65 is the result of consultations that have been taking place between the government and non-profit organizations across Ontario since 2008. As of October, the Not-for-Profit Corporations Act has entered third reading debate in the House. How will this affect non-profits?

As a fourth year Urban and Regional Planning student at Ryerson University, a housing activist in my community and a part-time employee at SHSC for the past three years, I was eager to volunteer my time to assist the residents who were being displaced from their homes after the fire at 200 Wellesley Street East.

When looking for information on social housing resources or news online, sometimes blogs get overlooked. Here are three blogs from the social housing sector that you can follow to keep up-to-date on what’s new and what’s important in the sector.

If you drive, you need auto insurance and you have probably heard about the auto insurance reforms that became effective in Ontario on September 1st. What you may not have heard about though, is what those reforms are and why they were necessary.

Over the summer, the MaRS Centre hosted an exhibit on sustainable architecture and ecological design. Sam Chapman, a representative from GLOBE, attended the exhibit and narrated this video blog, which highlights the various building designs on display, the importance of sustainable design and architecture, and how the exhibit relates to social housing.

What comes to mind when you think of customer service? Line-ups at the bank? The dreaded “press 1 for accounts payable”, “press 2 for sales”, “press 0 to be placed on hold for several hours”? How about the people you work with and/or your Board of Directors? Do you consider them your customers?

As a housing provider and landlord, you are constantly on the lookout for hazards and potential safety risks. But did you ever think that potting soil could pose a fire hazard?